Search continues for Roanoke Rapids slaying suspect
Halifax County sheriff's deputies submitted a murder suspect Wednesday for consideration on America's Most Wanted. Maj. Bruce Temple said authorities believe the man who killed Michael Davis of Roanoke Rapids may have left the area.
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Richard Charles Demello, 44, is wanted on charges of assault with a deadly weapon, first-degree kidnapping and larceny of a motor vehicle.
Investigators believe that Demello killed Davis, 48, at his Mobley Street home sometime before 7 a.m. March 28. Davis died from repeated blunt force trauma to his upper torso with a sharpened object, deputies said.
Deputies said Demello also threatened a woman with a knife and tied her up to a bed. She broke free, escaped from the house and reported the crime.
Investigators have said that the men knew each other but haven't commented on a motive for the slaying. Demello was released from prison in January and has 11 convictions for felony breaking-and-entering and larceny in Harnett County, according to state Department of Correction records.
Demello has ties to Harnett County, Rhode Island and Missouri. He might be driving a blue 1998 Plymouth Neon with a spoiler, possibly with North Carolina license plate YWZ-2442.
Anyone with information about Demello's whereabouts is asked to call the sheriff's office at 252-583-8201 or Halifax County Crime Stoppers at 252-583-4444.
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